The Corduroy Banshee
by Darkmoose84
Summary: Three years after Weirdmageddon, Dipper, Mabel, and Pacifica travel to Wendy's house, as a banshee begins haunting her. Star and Marco fall smack dab into the living room to help with the problem.


Gravity Falls, Oregon, June 30th, 2015

The three made their way up the path to the cabin. The morning sun was barely rising, though they could not see it on the horizon through the dense forest. It was actually a familiar path for the group, but for some reason, it felt different this time, as though there were slight alterations to the surroundings that made it an altogether different place. Perhaps the trees had grown larger, perhaps the group had grown taller since their growth spurts over the past three years, or perhaps it was simply the reason they were hiking to the cabin in the first place, the fact that an otherwise normal family home would all of a sudden be experiencing paranormal activity.

This was of course the home of "Manly" Daniel Corduroy and subsequently one of their best friends, Wendy.

"It shouldn't be too much farther," Dipper shouted behind him, "Don't let the new foliage fool you."

"Don't worry, bro-bro," Mabel said, "I still remember the path like the back of my hand." She then looked down at the back of her aforementioned hand. "Hey, is that mosquito bite new?" Dipper gave a short chuckle to her question. "But you go on ahead. I've got a few things to say to Paz."

She then walked further behind to talk to Pacifica, who was walking rather slow, holding her arms to her side, staring down at the ground and attempting to watch where she stepped. The last thing she wanted was to step in anything…unpleasant.

"So, you seemed pretty insistent on coming with us this time," Mabel slowly chimed, drawing out her words as if to suggest something, "I didn't think you were that outdoorsy."

"Ugh, I'm generally not," Pacifica grunted, "Bugs just eat me alive; I don't think the off I brought with me is working. Plus, it's muddy and grimy out here; I really hope I don't ruin my new boots on this little excursion of yours." She paused for a moment and looked up at the trees. "Though, I will admit, it is absolutely gorgeous out here. I'm just here because I thought I could help with being your resident ghost whisperer again. In case I can't, I brought along a silver compact in case we need to trap it."

"Uh huuuuh," Mabel said with some enthusiasm, still keeping her insinuating tone, "Any oooother reason?"

"No," Pacifica yelped with agitation, shaking her head with a cross look on her face. Mabel gave her a look of disbelief but kept her smug smile. After a moment of silence, Pacifica caved. "Okay, I just wanted an excuse to be near Dipper again…just in case the dork does anything stupid again. I want to make sure he's okay."

"And when exactly are you going to tell him you like him?" Mabel chided.

"You know I can't do that," Pacifica responded, "What if he still likes Wendy? And, wait, doesn't he have a girlfriend in California?"

"Nope," Mabel answered, "That really didn't last long. And I think it's safe to say he's moved on from Wendy. Come on, girl. This is your chance to make your move on him."

"Are you sure?"

"Trust in the Mabel," she replied, speaking in third person, "The Mabel knows these things. Go on." With that, she pushed Pacifica forward a bit, urging her to catch up to Dipper. She wished Candy and Grenda were there to see this happen, but she understood they were helping McGucket make a new music device that might help Candy on her next trip to music camp. "Should I say 'match made' now, or save it for later?"

"Dipper, can I…?" Pacifica began, finally catching up to Dipper on the path. But before she could finish her sentence, she saw that Dipper had stopped.

The group finally reached the cabin, though it looked bigger than they last remembered it. Manly Dan must have been doing some expansion, especially since all four of his kids were getting older.

"Looks like we made it," Dipper said, "Still strange how familiar yet unfamiliar everything is. But now its time to take on Wendy's ghost problem." He looked back at Pacifica. "Hey! You were about to ask me something?"

"No…it's nothing," Pacifica answered nervously.

"Well, I wanted to say I'm glad you came with us," Dipper smiled at her, "You've really gone out of your way with trying to be nicer to us these past couple of years."

"I'm still not that nice, you know," Pacifica responded, "But somebody's got to make sure you two nerds don't get into too much trouble." And the two of them laughed together, Pacifica reaching out and grabbing Dipper's hand. "But seriously, if I get hurt on this trip, I'm suing the crap out of both of you. Deal?" She then lifted Dipper's hand and locked her pinky around his.

"Ha, deal," Dipper laughed and clutched her pinky tighter with his. For a moment, their eyes were locked together, and neither one knew why but they didn't want to break away.

Every primal urge within her told her to lean in and kiss him, but her inhibitions of doubt and worry held her back.

Just then, the front door to the cabin opened with the matron of the house ready to greet everyone.

"Hey, guys!" Wendy said, "I thought I heard you all out here." Dipper and Pacifica broke their gaze and disconnected their hands, both of them blushing. Of course, Wendy noticed this, and the thought put a smile on her face.

"WENDY!" Mabel shouted, running up the path and the front steps of the cabin before bear hugging her red-headed sister-in-arms.

"Great to see you, too, Mabel," Wendy replied, hugging Mabel back, "I do miss seeing you guys at the Mystery Shack, but the lumber mill's got me pretty busy as of late. But you know, I think I might enjoy this line of work after all."

"Well, we know it's important for your possible internship," Dipper said.

"Yeah, there's that," Wendy responded, "Though I really wish I could just go out and do crazy stuff with the guys again." There came a distant crash from within the cabin, causing everyone to look through the doorway, though they couldn't see anything. "And there's my other problem, but I guess that's why you guys are here."

They made their way into the cabin, but things were certainly amiss with the table being on the ceiling, the glassware neatly stacked beneath it, complete with two foot long logs hovering in a circle around them, and the television being turned on its side and looping nothing but some of the weirder segments from old Sesame Street episodes. The only thing not odd in the room was a bust of Pallas near a side table next to the door that seemed to be staring at them as they entered. Of course, it went right back to being weird when they noticed a cell phone that was covered in duct tape, pinning it to the table.

"Uuugh, why is the phone taped down?" Pacifica asked with some hesitation.

"My dad did that," Wendy answered, "He got a call on it last night and said he thought he heard mom's voice before hearing something altogether different that he refuses to tell me about, something that left him shaking and wide-eyed. I've never seen my father frightened by anything, but whatever was on the other end finally did it. He tried throwing the phone away, but it kept flying back and hitting him in the head, all the while making this garbled wailing noise. His solution: get the duct tape. Duct tape fixes everything, man."

"Well, this is certainly odd," Dipper said.

"And all too familiar," Pacifica followed.

"Well, at least the ghost sounds like it's at least trying to have fun," Mabel chirped.

"A little too much fun when it throws things at you," Wendy said, "This all started about a week ago when I heard some noise coming from under the stairs; it sounded like some distant screaming. Then all of our stuff started flying around for no reason. I swear, each day, I think that scream gets louder."

Not two seconds later, the group thought they heard some distant screaming, but it soon faded.

"Okay, getting out the holy water," Dipper sarcastically drew out his words, producing a vial of holy water at the ready. Pacifica clutched the compact in her pocket, holding it close and feeling the NW engraving on it. Mabel pulled out her grappling hook, and Wendy brandished her ancestor's ax, which seemed to have some weird glow coming from it for a brief moment.

"It's still here," Wendy whispered, "Just hiding somewhere."

Just then, They saw something at the top of the stairs, a figure standing in the dark. It appeared to be a woman in a long white dress. Her hair was a dank orangish red that snaked its way over her temples. Her skin appeared bloodless and waxy. When they tried to look at her face, it was hard to make out too much of her face. Her eyes were lost in the shadow, so as they may as well have not been there. What they could see was her teeth, these small narrow, pointed, extraordinarily white teeth.

"Uh, hello?" Wendy muttered, but just as she did, the thing at the top of the stairs let out that all familiar scream the Corduroy family had heard night after night, this time loud enough to force them to cover their ears. It then flew from the top of the stairs and down to our heroes, who all staggered together by the entrance, and force of its form knocked each of the the four there assembled upon their backs.

The entity then hovered in the archway of the front door, its outline still clear despite the morning sun. It then pointed its gnarled finger at Pacifica, who looked up at the thing and felt the same fear she had at the mansion three years prior. It still had no eyes, but she could tell it was staring at her, burning into her soul all the hate it held, though she had no idea why.

Wendy looked up at the thing as well, her ears still ringing. There was something very familiar about this spirit, and had it not looked as distorted as it had, she would have called it family. In such, she felt this strange inherent need to want to help its pain.

The entity then flew into the morning sunlight and disappeared, the front door immediately slamming itself in the spirit's absence.

The group pulled themselves to their feet.

"What just happened?" Mabel asked, rubbing her temples, "This feels like the last sleepover I had when I woke up to Grenda laying on my head. Headache central all around."

"Well, whatever it was," Pacifica began, "I'm shoving this silver mirror right in its face. No one knocks down a Northwest and gets away with it." She reached for the door handle and attempted to open it, though this action was in vain. "Ugh! Why won't this open?"

"Stand back, woman," Wendy said, gently pushing Pacifica out of the way, "I got this. It doesn't look like it's locked; maybe it's just stuck." Wendy then tried to pull the knob even harder, pushing her boot on the doorframe. She gave it one last yank before falling back. "Dang, man. It's stuck pretty good."

As the group helped Wendy to her feet, they heard the voice of the old woman's spirit echo off the walls, saying things such as "You're never leaving this house," "Never forgive; never forget," "They will pay for their crimes against my husband," and various other cliches one might expect from a haunting.

"I'm not sure what category to put this thing in," Dipper said.

"I think it might be one of my ancestors," Wendy responded, "Maybe Archibald's wife?"

"Probably category 11 if that's the case," Dipper answered.

"All the more reason for me to be here," Pacifica followed, "If we catch her in the mirror and show her that we're friends now and that I'm going to make up for my family's history, maybe she'll be at peace."

"Well, while we're waiting," Mabel chimed, "If you've got the ingredients for it, who's up for some Mabel Juice? If we're going to be fighting a ghost, we need all the artificial energy we can get."

Marco walked out into the morning sunlight from the castle gates, the smell of freshly roasted toast, porridge, and bacon lingered throughout the dew-covered streets. What he perceived to be ancient folk music echoed from the streets, some strange combination of bagpipes, flute, guitar, and hurdy-gurdy. He wondered where he could purchase a decent breakfast, not worrying about the type of currency, as it seemed his $650 dollars was accepted across dimensions.

As he thought of this, he felt a pair of arms wrap around his waist.

"Hey, Marco!" Star's voice jingled in its usual pleasantness. Marco reached down and held Star's hands in his own, out of pure instinct, but immediately pulled them off of him and turned around to face her, knowing the consequence had he held on too long to what he knew he truly wanted. Still, he smiled, knowing that she was still with them even after yesterday's events.

"Hey Star," Marco replied, "How are you feeling?"

"Still sleepy," Star yawned, "but I'm okay. I'm still not sure what exactly happened yesterday, but I'm glad we don't have to worry about Toffee anymore."

"That is a bit of a relief," Marco smiled, "But you don't remember when you transformed and irradiated him? It was…just…I don't know how to describe it."

"No…I can't say I do. But that still leaves some problems about what happened when I left Earth," Star began, her tone changing, "Marco…I said some things before I left that…I'm not sure I can take back. You know how I feel now, and I'm worried things are going to be awkward between us." Her left hand reached up to her hair, and she began tugging at it in agitation. "I don't want you and Jackie to hate me now. I just want both of you to be happy, but I also want to be in your life and you in mine. And I'm so sorry if I screwed that up." Her eyes began to tear up, and Marco immediately noticed this.

"Star, Star, look," Marco took her hands again and looked her in the eye, "You don't have to be sorry. And nothing has to be awkward between us. I promise. And Jackie doesn't hate you either. I talked to her before I left to find you, and she's just as worried about you. So is Janna. We all were. You touched so many lives over this past school year that we don't know what we'd do without you either." He lifted out his arms, and Star didn't hesitate to embrace him. Their hug lasted for several long minutes, neither wanting to leave the other.

Then Marco said something he probably knew he shouldn't, though it was something Star needed to hear.

"Star I'm really confused right now," he began, still holding her close, "While I do like Jackie, I…I think I feel the same way for you. I don't know. It's just…when you were gone, I thought about all the happy times we had and the adventures we shared and…and I didn't want to imagine my life without you either. I'm just so torn right now that I…I…"

"Shhhh," Star shushed him, raising her fingers up to his lips before going back to hug him. She wanted to ask him how he could still be so confused. She wanted to point out to him how quickly he went after her up those stairs, how he hadn't even thought of spending time with Jackie even after the Bon Bon incident until Star invited her to the Love Sentence concert, how he always felt awkward around Jackie but could freely be himself around her. She wanted to blurt out how she wanted to spend the rest of her life with him, how she wanted to grow old with him, how theirs was a love that was more than a love, how she wanted to marry and have a family with her best friend.

But she didn't. She knew better than that.

"We don't have to have all the answers right now, Marco," Star stated, "For now, just know I'll always be your best friend, no matter how life changes for us…Now, let's head back to Earth! I want to experience this Summer Break thing."

"You're free to come back to Earth?" Marco asked.

"Yup, sure am, best buddy!" Star exclaimed, "Mom and dad gave me the okay to go back with you. I'm really amazed at how much mom seems to be trusting me and how much she's come out of her tough shell. I used to see her as this authoritarian snake around my neck, but as of late, we've really opened up to each other. She said she 'trusts my judgement,' so I think we're making progress."

"Well, that sounds good," Marco replied, "Sooooo…no new threats or anything? No super wizards or eldritch abominations left unchecked?"

"I think the only one left for us is Miss Heinous, but I doubt we'll have any trouble with her," Star said, "Nothing Princess Marco can't handle!"

"I still don't get how she can't see that I'm a guy," Marco stated, "I mean, my voice is getting deeper, I've got an Adam's apple…"

"But you're just so pretty, Marco!" Star chided him, reaching up and rubbing his cheeks, "But, yeah, I did ask mom just to be sure there wasn't anyone we had overlooked, and she assured me…rather suspiciously…that there wasn't anything else."

"What about that Queen Eclipsa person I read about?" Marco inquired, "You said she might still be alive, right?"

"I did ask mom about that," Star followed, "But she kept assuring me that she wasn't coming back, though she didn't exactly sound very certain…I don't think she knows herself." Star paused for a moment, reflecting on this thought for a moment until finally speaking again. "But, hey, let's not worry about it until there's somethin' to worry about."

"Yeah," Marco agreed, "We've gone through enough. It's time we had a break."

"You want to do us the honors?" Star asked.

"With pleasure," Marco responded. He then produced the scissors from his hoodie and opened a portal. They then leapt through it, albeit with some reluctance from Marco to leave the pleasant smells.

"Now, I just have to add to add the plastic dinosaurs," Mabel said, dropping the toys into the large pitcher filled with her bizarre sugary drink.

"Those are still a necessary part of your recipe?" Pacifica asked, squinting one of her eyes in bewilderment.

"No matter how old we get," Dipper added, "she's not going to lose the quirks."

"One just has to go with the flow of Mabel," Wendy sighed in relaxation, putting her hands behind her head as she slumped in her easy chair, still trying to ignore the fact that half of her furniture was floating in mid air.

Just then, in the middle of the ceiling, a blue portal began to form.

"Uhh, ladies…" Dipper muttered, "you might want to see this."

"Ahh!" Pacifica yelped as she walked back to the living room from the kitchen, "Is the ghost coming back already?"

Wendy got up from her spot and grabbed the ax, ready for whatever decided to manifest itself in her living room. Dipper was about to grab the holy water when something finally came through the portal. It appeared to be two humanoid figures, one a blonde girl in a green dress with a pink octopus design, a headband with horns, and pink hearts on her cheeks; the other was a boy in a red hoodie. They weren't quite the threat the group had anticipated, though it was to Wendy's mild frustration as their entrance made them fall directly onto her coffee table, causing the legs to break and laying it flat. Fortunately, the floating glassware moved out of the way to make room for their landing.

"Ow, sorry Star," the boy groaned, sitting up, "Here I thought I was a natural at making accurate portals."

"Aww, it's okay, Marco," the girl named Star said, sitting up herself, "I don't always get it right myself. Plus, there could be something throwing it off."

"Umm, hi?" Dipper mumbled out, waving his hand, "And who might you be? You don't look like ghosts." Dipper then drew his attention to Star's cheeks. "You must be a Mewman!" Dipper had of course heard of the strange interdimensional occurrences throughout the Southern California region throughout the last year and had heard the term from his online paranormal groups; the rest of his friends, along with Marco, just looked at him in shock and confusion.

"You guessed right, new friend Whoeveryouare!" Star shouted excitedly, standing to her feet, "The one and only magical Princess Star Butterfly at your service." She held up her wand and twirled around, sparkles bursting around her like miniature flash bangs and causing everyone to go blind for a couple of seconds.

"And I'm Marco Diaz, regular human from California," he introduced himself, standing up and holding out his hand to Dipper, who politely shook it with some hesitance.

"California, eh?" Dipper asked, "What part?"

"Echo Creek," Marco answered, "It's kind of in the middle of Los Angeles, Eagle Rock, and Pasadena."

"Piedmont here," Dipper replied, "I'm Dipper by the way."

"I wish they'd just move here," Pacifica said under her breath, "I wouldn't have to miss Dipper so much." Then she recognized the girl's name. "Hey, princess, do you know some horned prince named Tom Lucitor?"

"Actually yes," Star responded, "He's an ex-boyfriend and a bit of a jerk."

"He's getting better, though," Marco added.

"From when I met him," Pacifica continued, "the jerk part was definitely evident. He mentioned your name in passing and that he was really upset about your breakup. He was coarse and uncouth…and reminded me too much of how I used to be. Lets just say, he and I got into a fight the first moment we met."

"You've gotten a lot better than you used to be, Paz," Wendy interjected, patting her on the back, "You're definitely not that mean girl we first met those years ago. You've still got an edge about you, which I admire, but you're at least not all high-and-mighty. And you know, if you can change your attitude, anyone can."

"Tom's making progress," Marco said, "The last time he and I hung out, we actually had a fun time, and he only threatened to kill me once."

"Charming," Wendy chuckled, "I'm Wendy, by the way. Yeah, it sounds like this Tom guy might just be all talk. I know the type." She immediately thought of Robbie. "Sometimes, though, when it comes to friends like that, you just have to sit back, chill, and know they're just kind of insecure. I just wanna tell them, 'That's no way to live your life, dude.'"

"Yeah, I'm kinda trying to learn to chill out more often," Marco continued on the subject, "You know, you remind me of my current girlfriend, Jackie. She's a pretty mellow, go-with-the-flow type herself. Probably what helps her relax so well on her skateboard."

"Well, this Jackie chick sounds pretty cool," Wendy said, "I'd probably get along with her just fine." She thought about what he just said, the phrase he used, 'current girlfriend,' which sounded like it implied it wasn't exactly permanent or that this boy wasn't exactly thinking long term, if he was thinking at all. She then looked over at Star, who looked mildly perturbed at the mention of this girl, and immediately knew the whole story, though she decided not to say anything further about it.

Mabel walked into the room from the kitchen, bringing with her the strange energy drink.

"Did someone say they were a magical princess?" Mabel asked with great enthusiasm.

"That'd be meeee," Star answered with the same level of energy, pointing to herself, "What can I do you for?"

"For one, can you teach me the whimsical power you may possess?" Mabel asked excitedly, "I always wanted magical princess powers of my own! I thought I had some once, but that was just from the old Smile-Dip that I ate."

"My magic is kind of hard for Earth-dwellers," Star's voice strained a bit, "although that doesn't stop my friend Janna from asking me about it every day. You'd probably be fast friends."

"Well, would you like to try this West Coast-famous Mabel Juice," Mabel replied, "It's made with love, three different kinds of fruit juice, two Red Bulls, and at least ten cups of pure sugar, all with plastic dinosaurs or troll figurines to give it that Mabel vibe."

"Sure, I'll try a swig!" Star obliged and proceeded to drink what roughly amounted to a small sip, perhaps about half a tablespoon, from the pitcher before handing it back. Not two seconds later, Star's eyes and smile widened and she began shaking up and down. "Wow, that's some good stuff, girl with the awesome puppy dog sweater! I feel like I could run a marathon right now; in fact I kinda want to! But most of all, I'll need to get the recipe from you and bring some with me the next time Marco and I go to Britta's Tacos. I think it would go perfect with their burritos!"

"I like your thinking!" Mabel exclaimed, "I typically have some with the secret surprise tacos I find in my gruncle's car sometimes!"

"The cosmos has sent me a like-minded person," Star whispered to herself in amazement. And the two proceeded to laugh and chatter with each other at a 100-mile-per-hour speed that no one else in the room could discern.

"Oh great," Pacifica whispered to Dipper, "Now there's two of them."

"And here I thought the universe would collapse if there was another Mabel," Dipper followed, and they giggled to each other, "But it's good Mabel found a new friend. I think we can trust these two."

"I'm just wondering what we're going to do when the ghost comes back," Pacifica stated, "Can these two help us out?"

"Guys, I think we might be ignoring the elephant in the room," Wendy interrupted Star and Mabel's joyous bonding, pointing at the floating glassware and television.

"Yeah, I was kind of wondering about that…" Marco began, but a tremendous, ghastly scream overcame them all, forcing the group to cover their ears and fall to their knees. Out of one of the walls flew the entity, its eyes still hollow and its teeth still narrow and white, poking out from its decayed, writhing lips. It shrieked hideously once more as it came into view and then flew towards Pacifica.

She had reached for her compact as the banshee came closer, but it wasn't fast enough, as the creature grabbed her the by front of the shirt and pulled her close to its face. It opened its mouth once more and instead of screaming, it began sucking in the air from Pacifica's lungs. It was a stifling feeling that she struggled against, her natural fight response kicking as she grabbed at the beast's hand at her shirt and kicked her feet as it lifted her in the air. She felt that she got in a good kick to the specter's leg, but it didn't appear to do anything. Soon, she would lose her strength to do any of that at all.

Suddenly, the monster loosened its grip as something crashed on the back of its head, the contents of the object causing the the creature to shriek once more. Pacifica fell to the floor as the spirit floated towards the ceiling.

"Eat anointed holy water, you…uh thing!" Dipper shouted, not exactly clear in his thinking. He ran to Pacifica who kept coughing in order to regain her breath. "Are you okay?" His voice was thoroughly concerned.

"Yeah, thanks to you," Pacifica said sweetly, "But now I'm ready for revenge. She doesn't get to do that to me and get away with it." She reached for the compact in her pocket again, this time able to take it out. The ghost, however, flew back at her again.

"Hiya!" Marco yelled and did a spinning kick to the creature, sending it flying back, "Ha, I guess mortal punches and kicks work on you now after you got splashed with that stuff!" He then did a jumping uppercut as the thing flew at them once more, sending it back again.

"My turn!" Wendy yelled and whacked the thing with the ax, not exactly cleaving the spirit in any way but still knocking it towards the center of the room.

"Yellow Daffodil Proton Stream!" Star shouted as she fired a burst of electric energy from it, the effigies of daffodils flying from it as well as the pleasant smell of spring flowers. It then collided with the entity and held it in the center of the room. "I'm not sure how long I can keep the spell up!" She held her wand tighter but still looked as though she were straining to hold it in place. "Better think of a plan soon." She staggered and fell to one knee, trying to keep the energy going.

Pacifica edged near the beam of light that held the entity, trying to steady the mirror, but hesitated.

"That beam is going so singe off my hair or worse!" she yelled, "And I just had it redone yesterday!"

"Allow me," Mabel said, putting her arm around Pacifica's shoulder, "Grappling Hook Blast!" She then fired her grappling hook at the creature, which then hooked around its tattered dress. Mabel then recoiled it and pulled the spirit straight into the mirror in Pacifica's silver compact with a quick flash of white light.

The glassware and furniture fell to the floor. The television stopped playing creepy imagery and changed back to the Championship Rabbit Show.

The group threw various cheers into the air. Marco ran over to help Star who promptly hugged him. Mabel gave Wendy and Pacifica a rough high five, and Pacifica ran over to Dipper and gave him a rather strong bear hug.

"Now what should we do?" Mabel asked.

"Now you've got your own pet ghost!" Star shouted, "Just remember to take good care of her. Though the last time I kept a ghost in the house, it tried to eat us, so maybe that's not a good idea."

"I don't think we can just leave her there," Dipper said.

"Let me see her," Wendy requested. Pacifica handed her the compact and allowed her to look into it. The frightful spirit was banging on the glass, as if demanding to be let free. Despite the decay and ghastly nature of the figure, Wendy could see some familial resemblance. "Guys, I think this is my great great grandmother, the one that was married to Archibald."

"No wonder she was so angry with me," Pacifica speculated, "Just another person my family hurt."

"Should I go ahead and exorcise her?" Dipper asked, pulling out Journal 4.

"No, dude," Wendy commanded, pulling Pacifica closer to her so they both could see the mirror, "Paz and I got this."

"Aren't you worried it might break out?" Marco asked.

"Don't worry, Marco," Star interjected, "I think they can handle it."

"Hey, gran gran," Wendy said calmly which seemed to calm the ghost down, "I know you're upset, but things have changed since you've been around."

"Yeah, we're friends now," Pacifica responded with a smile, pressing herself closer to Wendy, "The Northwests may have lied to you and so many others over the past centuries, but I'm not like them. I'm taking the family name back, starting with returning your husband's ax to its rightful place with its family."

"Right here," Wendy held up the ax, "And I intend to use it for the betterment of the Corduroy Lumber industry…although we have more advanced tools now."

"But please know that our generation has made progress," Pacifica continued, "Your husband is at peace now that we've kept our promise, so maybe it's time for you to join him."

The ghost shifted in appearance, and the decay to her face gradually faded. She appeared as she did in her younger years, a facade that made them think of what Wendy might look like a decade from now. She smiled before a blip of light appeared across the mirror, causing the image of the banshee to vanish.

"Be at peace, Lady Corduroy," Wendy said, and Pacifica closed the compact. The two girls looked at each other and smiled.

"I meant that, you know," Pacifica assured her, her usual firmness in her tone, "about fixing my family name. When I'm older, I will make this right by you."

"I believe ya, Paz," Wendy laughed and proceeded to give the formerly snotty rich girl a headlock, complete with noogie.

"And all of you," Pacifica continued after breaking free of Wendy's arm, "Let's go to Greasy's Diner. I'll make you all a couple of apple pies. Lazy Susan gave me to some time to practice baking a few the last time I worked, and I wanna show off on how much better I am at it now." She pointed at Star and Marco. "You weirdos can come, too."

"We'd love to stay," Marco said, "But we've got to get home…"

"Come on Marco," Star moaned. She then reached up and grabbed Marco by the cheeks, "You know you cannot resist the power of apple pie! Sugary goodness awaits us!"

The group then enjoyed some lunch at Greasy's Diner, Marco offering to pay for everyone with some of the $650 dollars he'd found in his wallet this morning (the royalties he received were always so prompt and direct; of course, he did not complain about this fact). Pacifica brought out the apple pies she made, a time tunnel to the smells they generally associated with November. The group sat and laughed as Star produced various summoning spells at the table, causing Mabel's envy to grow though it still enchanted her.

Wendy and Dipper ran off to try the strength game again together, as it had been such a mainstay of the diner for so long. Determined to get more pancakes, the two laughed as they performed the strength test multiple times. Pacifica watched them, a forlorn look on her face, wondering that since they're older now if Dipper and Wendy still might have some strange chance at romance.

Star watched Pacifica's manner completely change at seeing this. She then looked back over at Marco, who was currently texting Jackie with everything that happened. The princess then walked over to the blonde waitress.

"Hi, Paz, right?" Star asked as she approached Pacifica. Pacifica only looked up at her without saying anything; she, however, wasn't making any effort to hide what she was thinking. All her thoughts were on her sleeve, or in this case, her slight pouting lips. "Can I give you some royal magical princess advice?"

Pacifica gave a slight nod to show her understanding.

"Don't hesitate in going for what you want," Star continued, "Sometimes, not taking that risk hurts even worse than if you did. From what I can tell, you don't have any trouble speaking your mind. Try it on that Dipper guy over there. You might like the results."

Before long, Star and Marco took their leave, opening up a portal in the middle of the diner and giving several patrons a shock, causing them to think Bill might be reappearing. The group exchanged numbers, emails, etc. before leaving at last. Upon their leave, Pacifica turned her attention to Dipper and walked over to him with deliberate steps.

"Hey dork," she said, grabbing his hands, "Joking, promise. But Dipper…no, Mason." Dipper's eyes widened, a bit shocked at what he'd just heard. He looked over at Mabel briefly, who swayed back and forth, whistling to herself as if she were trying to hide the fact that she blabbed his name to her. But Pacifica continued. "Mason, I…I really like you. You're smart, funny, courageous, and I think we should go out on a date together sometime on your visit."

"Pacifica, I…" Dipper began to speak, but not three seconds had he opened his mouth than Pacifica leaned in and gave him a long passionate kiss. Wendy and Mabel cheered both of them on as they did this, getting a few patrons and Lazy Susan in on the revel. Finally, they disengaged, allowing Dipper to speak. "I like you, too, Pacifica. After the night in your old mansion, I thought we might have had some vibe, but I wasn't sure so I didn't say anything. But after that, how can I say no?"

"Well good," Pacifica concluded, "Seafood restaurant. Tonight. And you'd better be there, nerd, or I'll kick you in the knees." The two laughed before Pacifica kissed him again. Mabel moved in close to Pacifica.

"See, I told you you could do it," she whispered to her.

"That's for your confidence in me," Pacifica whispered back, "Now if I could just find some way to visit you both beyond the summer…"

Star and Marco landed in the middle of the Diaz kitchen from the portal that formed midair. They landed to find the house was empty.

"Well, that was a weird way to return to Earth," Marco stated.

"Yeah," Star followed, "but it was a fun one! And we made some new friends on the way."

"Well, I feel an afternoon nap coming up after all the pancakes and pie," Marco continued, "I'll just have a quick moment to lie down. Food coma…" He then began his march upstairs.

"Marco, I…" Star stammered for a moment, "…I know we said not to worry about things, what I said, an' all that, but believe me when I say that I'll always be your best friend and if or when you decide otherwise, I'll gladly be your girlfriend or whatever it is you need to be."

"You don't have to wait for me, Star," Marco sighed, "I can't ask you to do that, and you don't need to get so hung up on me. It's not fair to you."

"I can't help it," Star continued, "My heart will always know what it wants, but let me do this." She walked up the few stairs where he was and kissed him on the cheek. "There, Jackie can't argue about a friendly peck on the cheek. Now go ahead and get some afternoon rest. I'll be wanting nachos later."

"You got it, Star," Marco smiled. He then turned and walked upstairs.

Star watched him as he disappeared around the corner hallway. There was a poem she had read while in the school library, an old Irish poem that when translated from the Gaelic ended with the line, "Once it sets in the heart/It cannot be freed evermore." She knew this would be difficult, but still it mattered little to her. She would always be supportive of Marco, as she knew he would be of her as well, and as long as she was with him, that's what mattered. It was young love, one Marco had yet to experience the same way she had; she thought of how she had felt with Tom and how that had changed overtime. With Marco, it was very different. But could Marco find himself in the same situation with Jackie that she did with Tom? Could their relationship dynamic change? The thought gave her both wariness of how her friends would feel and also joy of the possibility of becoming romantically involved with Marco one day.

Joy and hope were the feelings on which she thrived, and she vowed never to lose sight of those things.


End file.
